


becoming human

by blazeofglory



Category: Captain America (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Captain America: The Winter Soldier Spoilers, Fluff, M/M, Post-Captain America: The Winter Soldier
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-04-11
Updated: 2014-04-11
Packaged: 2018-01-18 22:52:29
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 490
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1445785
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/blazeofglory/pseuds/blazeofglory
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Steve teaches Bucky what it's like to live again.</p>
            </blockquote>





	becoming human

**Author's Note:**

> Anonymous tumblr prompt: literally anything with dehumanized bucky learning to be human again, steve there to help him every step of the way

Everything was different now. And, well, not exactly the good kind of different. New York looked nothing like he remembered it, and even looking at himself in the mirror was like looking into the eyes of a stranger. His hair was longer, his face was thinner, and there were scars littering his body that he did not know the origin of. Steve, though… Steve was the one constant. He was different too, much bigger and a lot sadder, but those changes had occurred in a very different war, a long time ago.

Bucky was doing his best to adjust. He understood new technology easily enough, despite not remembering learning how— but there was a lot that he couldn’t remember. Huge gaps of his life were still missing. He could speak too many languages to count and he knew how to kill a man before he could even open his mouth to scream, but there was more to living than that. That wasn’t his life anymore. For the first time in a long time, there was time for other things.

With gentle hands on top of his, Steve taught him how to do the little things. He cracked an egg without getting shell everywhere, and with Steve’s help, he made them French toast. He felt almost like a child when Steve reminded him to brush his teeth and wash behind his ears, but Steve was too earnest to make Bucky feel bad.

Steve still had work to do, what with the government being a complete mess, but Bucky had nothing. The days were long and boring. He read to pass the time, catching up on history and pop culture and a surprisingly intriguing magazine of knitting patterns. Then, one night, he asked Steve to take him out.

Sitting in a dark theater, their knees bumping and popcorn in their laps, Bucky just— he got that feeling again. The feeling that they’d done exactly this before. He set his popcorn aside and slowly, deliberately reached for Steve’s hand.

That was different, but a good different this time.

When they got back home (Bucky wondered for a second when it started being “home” and stopped being “Steve’s apartment”), they took separate showers. Steve reminded him to brush his teeth, and gave him an extra blanket because he somehow knew that Bucky had gotten cold the night before.

They said goodnight, but lingered In the hallway.

"I missed you," Steve said quietly, holding Bucky’s gaze evenly. It was dark, but they could both see fine. Steve looked at Bucky like he had once looked at the stars, only 10 years old, and asked his best pal what was up there. Bucky had shrugged, said he didn’t know, and asked him where the Big Dipper was.

Bucky smiled, feeling lighter than he had in years. “I missed you too.”

The next day, Steve cut Bucky’s hair. He started to recognize himself in the mirror again.

 


End file.
